A number of separate jurisdictions with their own immigration rules make up this region. So a traveller may wish to check the requirments for the territories in which they wish to travel, on the appropriate pages. However there is considerable co-operation and co-ordination between the authorities of the countries in this region meaning that the British and Irish Isles comprise a '''Common Travel Area''', which helps the vast majority of travelers enjoy hassle free travel when crossing borders within the British and Irish Isles.

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There are five separate jurisdictions with their own immigration rules in this region. So a traveller may wish to check the requirments for the territories in which they wish to travel, on the appropriate pages. The Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands have their own immigration rules, which are not exactly the same as the United Kingdom itself, these mainly concern long term residency, and are probably not important for the average tourist. Despite there being different rules in the different territories there is considerable co-operation and co-ordination between the various authorities in this region which means that the British and Irish Isles comprise a '''Common Travel Area''', which helps the vast majority of travelers enjoy hassle free travel when crossing borders within the Region.

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===By plane===

===By plane===

Revision as of 01:14, 22 March 2009

The British and Irish Isles refer to the islands of Great Britain, Ireland and nearby islands. They are located in Europe.

Countries

Isle of Mana British crown dependency in the Irish Sea, directly between Great Britain and Ireland

The Channel Islands are sometimes included in the term "British Isles" because they are a British crown dependency. However, they are located off the coast of Normandy, France, and are not geographically part of the British or Irish Isles.

Other destinations

Understand

Until 1922, Ireland was in fact part of United Kingdom. There are several distinct cultures in this island group, however there remain certain cultrual similarities between them, for example the English language is universally understood.

Many of the geographic names have different meanings depending on the context. For example Ireland in legal terms relates to the country Ireland, and not the geographical concept of the Island of Ireland. Similarly, Great Britain sometimes is understood to mean the largest island in the British and Irish Islands, but sometimes is understood to include certain other Islands, which are part of England, Scotland or Wales such as Lundy, Harris or Anglesey.

For further details it is probably best to look at the sections of the individual entities.

Talk

English is spoken to native standard by all but a tiny small minority of inhabitants of the British and Irish Isles. English is also the first language of the majority of inhabitants of the archipelago. However several million people speak languages other than English as their first language. Indeed it may surprise some visitors, (from within as well as outside of the islands) that in some small pockets, English is the first language of only a minority of speakers.

Considering the relatively small area compared with other English speaking areas, there are considerable variations in accent and dialect in spoken English throughout these Islands, although by and large this should provide no major obstactle to visitors with reasonable fluency in English. There are however dialects of English in certain parts of the Island group which can be said to form distinct languages such as "Scots" and "Ulster Scots".

The indigenous languages of the islands are of Celtic Origin. Welsh is the most widely spoken of these, and in some Western parts of Wales it remains the majority language. Irish, Manx and Scottish Gaelic are also spoken, and while closely related and sharing much of the same base vocabulary, these Gaelic languages are under normal circumstances not mutually intelligible. There are attempts to revive the Cornish language.

Most official signage is mono-lingual in English. However in Wales and Ireland signage is almost always billingual. Billingual sinage is not unknown in Scotland or the Isle of Man.

In recent decades immigration from farther afield has seen a number of other linguistic communities establish themselves throughout the islands, mainly, but not exclusively in urban England.

Get in

Visitors may find more useful information in the "Get in" sections of the specific part of the region they wish to enter.

Immigration and visa requirements

There are five separate jurisdictions with their own immigration rules in this region. So a traveller may wish to check the requirments for the territories in which they wish to travel, on the appropriate pages. The Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands have their own immigration rules, which are not exactly the same as the United Kingdom itself, these mainly concern long term residency, and are probably not important for the average tourist. Despite there being different rules in the different territories there is considerable co-operation and co-ordination between the various authorities in this region which means that the British and Irish Isles comprise a Common Travel Area, which helps the vast majority of travelers enjoy hassle free travel when crossing borders within the Region.

By plane

There are direct flights from somewhere outside the British and Irish Islands, to every constituent part of this region, except the Isle of Man.

The largest port of entry to this region, is London Heathrow Airport. It is the world's busiest international airport. Situated 15 miles west of Central London, Heathrow offers a large choice of international destinations, with direct flights to most countries in the world. Many onward air connections within the region are possible. Coach connections to other places in mainland Great Britain are generally good. Rail connections from Heathrow to London are good, however there are no direct services to other parts of Great Britain, a change of train will be necessary in London, or possibly at Reading Station which is served by a regular shuttle coach.

Heathrow's location in the far South East of the region means that many travellers to many other parts of these islands may be better off getting a direct flight to the specific part of the Region they are interested in. However from some parts of the world Heathrow may be the only realistic option, to get into the region, and then further arrangements for onward travel would then be required.

Other Airports such as Birmingham, Dublin, Gatwick, Glasgow, Manchester, Shannon are served by a number of long haul as well as European cities.

There are many other airports where a traveller can enter this Region from some long haul cities, and many European cities, further information is available on the pages about the specific country, or part of the country.

The arrangment's origins lie in the fact that whole of the Island of Ireland was once part of the United Kingdom and so there was never a need for immigration control for what was at that time domestic travel. Whilst Ireland and the United Kingdom have been separate countries for many decades, for the most part both have found it more beneficial to maintain relatively open borders. However because of the way it has developed over the years, the CTA arrangment is not as formalised as other similar arrangments (such as the Schengen Area), and so the exact rules can be quite complex for some third country nationals. There are therefore some limited exceptions to the principle of complete freedom of travel.

Nationals of a "Common Travel Area", Country can travel to any of the others without a passport.

Visitors from other countries who have been checked through immigration in one part of the area (e.g. England) wouldn't normally have to go through immigration procedures when continuing a journey to another part of the Area (e.g. Ireland). However only citizens of the European Economic Area have the right to travel between the two countries without a passport.

Visitors from a country needing a Visa to enter one Common Travel Area Country, but who is a resident in the other will generally need to apply for a Visa to enter the other. Whilst both countries have very similar Visa rules, it is important to remember that unlike the Schengen Area, the United Kingdom and Ireland maintain separate Visa systems.

See

Itineraries

Do

Eat

Drink

The Pub

The "Pub" concept has it's origins in the British and Irish Islands. These are premises licenced for the sale of alcoholic drinks, for consumption on and off the premises. The pub concept is distinct from the broader concept of a "bar". There are similarities shared by "pubs" throughtout the British and Irish Isles not shared with other sorts of drinking establishments elsewhere, the Irish Pub experience can be very distinct from the pub experience of elsewhere in these Islands.

Whisky (Whiskey)

Distilled spirits have been drunk on these islands for millennia. Whisky (or Whiskey in Ireland) is produced predominantly in Ireland and Scotland. There are however also Welsh and English Whiskies too.

Stay safe

Throughout this region, traffic drives on the left. In the United Kingdom, and its Crown Dependencies Speed Limits are expressed in Miles per hour. In the Republic of Ireland speed limits are expressed in Kilmometers per hour.